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MacBook Pro (Early 2008) 4GB Ram Help

S

sebjavierw

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 5, 2008
5
0
i have bought 2x2GB sticks of Kingston ram for my macbook pro.
but it cant read or even start up with the 4gb.
it can with the 3gb 1x1GB 1x2GB

it says on the tech specs that my macbook pro can support 4gb of ram
i dont know why this happens
any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
try pushing the ram in harder. maybe harder than you think is necessary. this is the problem most often than not.
 
Are you sure its an early '08 MBP then?

What does it say in the 'Hardware' section of the System Profiler? It should say MacBook Pro 4,1.

Either that or you have a faulty stick. Try the 3gb variation with both 2gb sticks, one at a time.

I have an early '08 MacBook Pro and 4gb works fine.
 
John89 said:
Are you sure its an early '08 MBP then?

What does it say in the 'Hardware' section of the System Profiler? It should say MacBook Pro 4,1.

Either that or you have a faulty stick. Try the 3gb variation with both 2gb sticks, one at a time.

I have an early '08 MacBook Pro and 4gb works fine.
Click to expand...

thanks
but i have tried both the 2gb sticks and they work fine seperately.
in the system profiler it says Macbook pro 4,1
 
vertigo78 said:
try pushing the ram in harder. maybe harder than you think is necessary. this is the problem most often than not.
Click to expand...


no sorry i pushed the ram in as hard as possible but nothing still happened.

when the 4gb is in the laptop
i press the power button and i hear the slot loading drive sound but no display it just stays black. i can hear the fans and hard drive etc. so it is own but no display so im not sure if its the video card of the ram. with 3gb of ram the video does work so im still not sure
 
maybe

maybe you should try waiting will it loads the memory or maybe one of the one of the slots might be defective and could only load a gig of ram: it once happenned to me I gave to repair (under waranty fortunatly)!:apple:
 
ktacharles said:
maybe you should try waiting will it loads the memory or maybe one of the one of the slots might be defective and could only load a gig of ram: it once happenned to me I gave to repair (under waranty fortunatly)!:apple:
Click to expand...

sorry but i have tried all the different combinations of 3gb ram
with 1x 1gb
and 1x 2gb
 
Has anyone found a known solution to this problem? I bought these and my MacBook Pro will only read a max of 3 gb at a time not matter which combination of 1 gb and 2 gb modules I use.
 
canzuini said:
Has anyone found a known solution to this problem? I bought these and my MacBook Pro will only read a max of 3 gb at a time not matter which combination of 1 gb and 2 gb modules I use.
Click to expand...
What model MacBook Pro do you have? It may be limited to a max of 3GB.

 > About This Mac > More Info > Hardware > Model Identifier:

sydenham said:
Reset the pram. That usually does it
Click to expand...
NVRAM/PRAM has nothing to do with the computer recognizing RAM.

Mac OS X: What's stored in PRAM
When to reset NVRAM or PRAM
 
GGJstudios said:
What model MacBook Pro do you have? It may be limited to a max of 3GB.

 > About This Mac > More Info > Hardware > Model Identifier:


NVRAM/PRAM has nothing to do with the computer recognizing RAM.

Mac OS X: What's stored in PRAM
When to reset NVRAM or PRAM
Click to expand...

I have had several occasions where a mac wouldn't recognise new RAM, and when I zapped the PRAM it worked. I don't know why... I have also had the same problem where the computer would recognise one stick of the new RAM as long as one of the sticks of the original RAM was left in place. But two of the new sticks wouldn't work. I have never been able to figure that one out.
 
Last edited:
applebook said:
Learn 2 read: "in the system profiler it says Macbook pro 4,1" :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Before you roll your eyes at me, notice that the poster you quoted posted that over a year and a half ago and hasn't been on this site for almost a year. The poster I asked the question of has not indicated what model they have, since that is their first and only post in this forum.
sydenham said:
I have had several occasions where a mac wouldn't recognise new RAM, and when I zapped the PRAM it worked. I don't know why...
Click to expand...
It must be coincidence, as they have nothing to do with each other.
 
Last edited:
GGJstudios said:
Before you roll your eyes at me, notice that the poster you quoted posted that over a year and a half ago and hasn't been on this site for almost a year. The poster I asked the question of has not indicated what model they have, since that is their first and only post in this forum.

It must be coincidence, as they have nothing to do with each other.
Click to expand...

He his referring to the OPs reply 5th post down where he says he has a 4,1.
 
Last edited:
sydenham said:
He his referring to the OPs reply 5th post down where he says he has a 4,1.
Click to expand...
Yes, I know, but that discussion ended a year and a half ago. The one I asked the question of isn't the OP, but is the one who resurrected this thread. That person hasn't stated what model they have.
 
GGJstudios said:
Yes, I know, but that discussion ended a year and a half ago. The one I asked the question of isn't the OP, but is the one who resurrected this thread. That person hasn't stated what model they have.
Click to expand...

Ahhhhhhh I get you. I didn't even think to look at the date when the thread was started. So you are right again. Well done.
 
System Profiler says that i have a MacBookPro4,1 just like one of the original posters had. Also, should I try to rest the PRAM with both of the new sticks in, because I can't even get to the grey startup screen with both of them in.
 
Yes reset it with the new memory sticks in. If it doesn't work it was worth a try. I found this on another forum, it also may be worth a try

In other cases, performing a set of open firmware reset routines can result in the memory being properly recognized again.
To boot into Open Firmware, shut down your Mac, then start it up while holding down the Command, Option, O and F keys. At the prompt, enter the following commands (you may want to write them down on a piece of paper before beginning this process), pressing the return key after each:
reset-nvram
set-defaults
reset-all
after which your Mac will restart.
 
canzuini said:
System Profiler says that i have a MacBookPro4,1 just like one of the original posters had. Also, should I try to rest the PRAM with both of the new sticks in, because I can't even get to the grey startup screen with both of them in.
Click to expand...
Resetting NVRAM/PRAM won't help, as it's not related to your system recognizing RAM.

Your model's maximum RAM: 6.0 GB (Actual) 4.0 GB (Apple)

If you have made sure the RAM is properly seated and it's still not recognized, it's likely that you have faulty RAM sticks. Get replacements from the vendor who sold you the RAM. If you need help installing it, take your Mac to an Apple Store and they can install the RAM for you.
 
I don't think the sticks are faulty, as they work with one stick of his original ram. They just don't seem to gel with his computer. I think he should return the ram and try ram from another vendor.
 
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